‘Loose’ Stormers frustrate Dobson despite Ulster win

Stormers coach John Dobson was a frustrated man after his side’s comeback 13-7 win over Ulster in their United Rugby Championship (URC) match at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday night.

The Irish giants produced a top first-half effort, but only led 7-0 at the break, with the Stormers fighting back in the second half to take the lead for the first time in the 73^rd minute and then seeing out the match.

Despite the fact that his team managed to battle back and get the important win, Dobson was frank in admitting that some of their play had been unacceptable, especially in the position they found themselves in late in the game.

“That first half performance of theirs was superb. We just didn’t have a plan. We made so many tackles, they got the ball so well, we lost all our energy and we couldn’t play. It was a lesson for us. The second half we just wasted so many try scoring opportunities,” explained Dobson.

“Our understanding at halftime was we couldn’t keep making so many tackles. So we got some ball, we got a few penalties and as soon as we had the ball they had to make the tackles, and that was the change in the game.

Too loose

“For me we were far too loose. We are making entry after entry but coming away with no return through us being too loose, trying to throw that extra offload instead of holding onto the ball.” he added.

“It’s been three games in a row now that we have butchered so many chances. But I don’t want to tell these guys to not be who they are. So it is a delicate balancing act, but they need to understand that some of that was not acceptable in terms of trying to get a win which is the most important thing.”

Stormers captain Salmaan Moerat was relieved that his charges were able to dig deep for the positive result and claimed that it was the mark of a champion team that they were able to win despite their struggles in the game.

“That was a proper ‘Test’ match. I think a lot of credit needs to go to Ulster. They put us under a lot of pressure in that first half. Somehow we managed to work our way back into the game early in the second half and then it could have gone either way,” said Moerat.

“That is really a sign of a championship side. To win even when everything is against you and things aren’t going your way. So we are really pleased with the win. We will have a look at our performance and see where we can improve, but we will enjoy this.”